As modern technology has advanced over the years, the number of distractions to driving have increased. It is not only a phone call, or a conversation with a passenger, that can take attention from the road- but more contemporary forms of inattention, which stem from texting and driving. Being distracted while driving can lead to fatal results. Attempting to juggle operating a vehicle and typing out a text message is just as dangerous, if not more dangerous, than driving while intoxicated. Research has even found that the probability of a driver crashing is twice as likely if the individual was texting than if they were driving intoxicated. Many cities and states have implemented ordinances and laws in an attempt to ban electronic device use…
According to the CDC, in 2011, 3,331 people were killed in crashes involving a distracted driver, compared to 3,267 in 2010. An additional, 387,000 people were injured in motor vehicle crashes involving a distracted driver in 2011 compared to 416,000 people injured in 2010. In June 2011, more than 196 billion text messages were sent or received in the US, up nearly 49+% from June 2009. Research done by the CDC compared the act of talking on a cell phone or texting while driving in the United States and seven European countries: Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, and the United Kingdom. They found that 65% of drivers in the United States ages 18-64 reported that they had talked on their cell phone while driving within the 30 days before they were surveyed. There are risk factors that comes with this, as we all…
Each day we go about our lives without rethinking the repercussions that could arise from our routine actions. Roughly, over 8 people are killed and 1,150 are injured each day from vehicular crashes involving a distracted driver (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). “New research from AT&T shows nearly 4-in-10 smartphone users tap into social media while driving. Almost 3-in-10 surf the net. And surprisingly, 1-in-10 video chat (AT&T).” “7-in-10 people engage in smartphone activities while driving (AT&T).” “A recent AT&T survey found that 97 percent of teens say they know that texting is dangerous. The survey also found: 75 percent of teens surveyed say that texting while driving is “common” among their friends; Almost all teens (89 percent) expect a reply to a text or email within five minutes or less; And 77…
Texting, statistics prove, is not only rising but creating problems on the nation’s highways. In the United States, texting increased from 9.8 billion messages a month in January of 2009 to 99.4 billion in January of 2010 (Bandelier 28). As quoted in “Time for a Change,” researcher Alan M. Tercero claims, “As many as 70 percent of those messages are being sent by people driving cars” (Automotive Review Council 29). An insurance accident investigator, Barry G. Hulicki, says that drivers using cell phones were involved in 22 percent of the fatal automobile accidents that occurred in 2011. Hulicki also cites law-enforcement and traffic-safety personnel as predicting that this percentage could rise as much as two percent per year…
Utah highways because they ran off the road. I honestly would have thought that the most…
Distracted driving is exactly what it sounds like. Distracted driving is driving while distracted. These distractions can range anywhere from eating to using a cell phone while driving- texting or calling, from loud music to having friends and family members in the car with you while you are driving. Almost anything can be a distraction as long as it takes your attention away from driving for anytime as short as five seconds. In fact, one study it said that eighty percent of all crashes and collisions and that at least sixty five percent of near crashes and collisions have to do with the driver being inattentive or distracted while behind the wheel. Three seconds may not seem like a very long at all, and it may not be…
How would you like being in a car driving then all of sudden you get in a crash and die. 4,of 5 teenagers aged 13 to 19 died in auto accidents,6,000 of those 4,000 are the results of distracted driving. Being a safe driver is important because it impacts the individual and the community.…
Recently in 2013, a new law has been passed making texting and driving illegal. This law was approved because of the mass amount of accidents occurring due to the operator of a vehicle texting while driving. I do not believe a Public Service Announcement about this topic will reduce the number of distracted driving related incidents. Other people believe this type of announcement will in fact reduce the number of distracted driving related accidents. Texting isn 't the only type of distracted driving. It can be anything from brushing your hair to talking to a passenger. Even the most common actions like adjusting the air conditioner or radio can distract someone driving.…
In 2005, a study put to test if talking on the phone is more dangerous than DUI. The results were that cellphone users, both handheld or hands-free, recated 18% slower to braking behind the car in front of them and were more likely to have a rear-end-collision than drunk drivers (Kiesbye 42-43). Which is astonishing news since no one ever compares drunk driving to being better than texting while driving. However, that is what the case is. No matter if it is handheld or hands-free phone, the chances of crashing are much higher than if the driver is drunk. Nevertheless, texting and drinking while driving are not the only life changing distractions that take place in a…
“Baseball is like driving, it’s the one who gets home safely that counts” Tommy Lasorda. Getting home safely while driving is not as easy as it may seem. Many people urge to argue that distractions while driving will do no harm. This may be true, but with one wrong turn, someone's life could be at it’s last minutes. Therefore, tougher laws are needed to combat distracted driving because simple education on this topic is failing to work, unnecessary costs are needed to be dealt with, and it causes deaths and injuries.…
Statistics prove driver distraction can cause accidents, injuries and death. In the article “Distracted Driving: Facts and Statistics” states “In 2014, 3,179 people were killed, and 431,000 were injured in motor vehicle crashes involving distracted drivers” (par. 5). Distracted driving is increasing as media and electronic devices are improving. From 2005 to 2008, distracted driving has increased. In 2005 there were 4572 fatalities involving distracted driving. It increased to 5870 fatalities in 2008. A 28% incline of accidents as more electronic devices are developing. In 2008,…
Distracted driving is any behavior that impairs the ability of a driver to operate a motor vehicle safely. Widespread cell phone ownership, the convenience and connectivity they offer and our virtual addiction to their habitual use, have made cell phones a significant distraction and a major source of automobile accidents and fatalities. Although many states have passed distracted driving laws, they have been difficult to enforce and mostly ignore the risks associated with hands-free operation. Education, mobile apps limiting cell phone use and other technologies may each offer some level of contribution, but the only viable near-term solution may be a technology that completely restricts all cell phone operation when a vehicle is…
Since technology has advanced in society the use of a cell phone while driving has become the most discussed problem of distracted driving due to the fact that cell phones are an integral part of life for most people (Helbock, 2015). Since the use of handheld electronic devices while driving became illegal, police are catching more people texting and talking on the phone because it is easier to see someone holding a phone to their ear than texting behind the steering wheel (Williams, 2016). Thus, people are leaning towards texting believing they have less of a chance of being caught for distracted driving. Texting, as well as most other driving distractions, involves three physical and mental actions that all take attention away from the road and are a driving hazard. The first action is visual, texting causes the driver’s eyes to look somewhere else besides the road. The second action is manual, the drivers hand and or hands are taken off the wheel while the vehicle is in motion and is operating controls. The third action is cognitive, the driver’s mind is not focused on driving, but on the handheld device (Helbock, 2015). Drivers engaged in texting are 23 times more likely to be involved in a crash or near crash compared to a non-distracted driver (CAA, Distracted Driving, 2016). Texting in a car results in…
The use of cell phones has spread like a wildfire over the past 10 years. It has become an everyday necessity, and many people depend on them to carry out daily operations. Unfortunately, many of these daily operations occur while the individual is driving. Failed attempts to make operating a cell phone behind the wheel hands-free has just created more distractions. As a result, many accidents have taken place in the last ten years due to the use of cellular phones while on the road.…
Distracted driving has always been a problem with our country since cars were invented but recently it has become an even bigger issue, now it is the leading cause of teen deaths. In our day and age cars have gotten faster and technology has gotten more advanced. We now have cell phones that can do multiple things and our cars also have their own technology. Cell phones pose the main threat towards distracted driving especially for teens. Since phones have been getting more advanced and being able to do more things on them, teens are especially susceptible to being on their phone while driving.…